The world has now been introduced to Marvel Studios' version of the Fantastic Four, and after years of anticipation, it was a worthy introduction. Directed by Matt Shakman, The Fanstic Four: First Steps presented new versions of Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal), Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby), Johnny Storm (Joseph Quinn) and Ben Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach). Despite a lackluster box office performance, the movie enjoyed a great critical reception—a first for the heroes—and thus, made fans excited to see more of them in the future.
The eclectic group of do-gooders will return in Avengers: Doomsday, where they'll join forces with Earth's Mightiest Heroes against Robert Downey Jr.'s Doctor Doom. The movie is still over a year away, but luckily, Marvel has been kind enough to give us nerds some Fantastic Four material to hold us over until their arrival. Granted, said offerings have been unorthodox. The House of Ideas has taken to releasing long-form ambient videos centered around MCU characters.
In October, Marvel Entertainment's official YouTube channel put out "Fantastic Four's Ben 'The Thing' Grimm Waiting," a nearly 10-hour-long video of the Thing in the kitchen. Now, it's the Human Torch's turn. The company has released "Human Torch Fireside." It features Joseph Quinn's Johnny Storm, with his back turned to the camera, as he overlooks New York City from the Baxter Building. He then flames on, and spends the entirety of the runtime in his powered-up form:
The video is captioned with: "Warm up with Johnny Storm this holiday season and watch The Fantastic Four: First Steps on [Disney Plus]."
As a nice surprise, at the 1:29:00 mark, H.E.R.B.I.E. shows up to interact with Johnny. Storm gives him a thumbs up, and the adorable robot leaves. The footage may be a few frames played on a loop, but it's nonetheless quite awesome. The special effects are surprisingly good, and its cinematography top-notch. It feels like a scene from a Marvel Studios production. It's fun for the House of Ideas to release these videos, as it allows fans to get lost in the MCU while doing chores or just relaxing.
As mentioned, Marvel has put out a few of these specia bits of marketing. Aside from the Thing's and this most recent Human Torch one, the company also released one focused on Hugh Jackman's Wolverine from Deadpool & Wolverine.
Johnny Storm's video serves as promotional material for the Disney+ release of The Fantastic Four: First Steps. However, given the fact that the Avengers: Doomsday trailer is expected to drop any day now, the video could also serve to drum up anticipation for the upcoming blockbuster.
The Fantastic Four will return in Avengers: Doomsday, hitting theaters on December 18, 2026.
What did you think about this new ambient video from Marvel? Which of these videos has been your favorite so far? Let me know in the comments!